OBJECTIVE: This study was designed to compare the characteristics of demographic data, clinical features, and personality in male and female alcoholics and to identify the clinically meaningful differences in the etiologies and the clinical features between the two groups. METHODS: The study group was composed of 30 males and 21 females who were recruited into the inpatient treatment. The researchers used self-reporting questionnaire composed of demographic data and drinking patterns, Michigan alcoholism screening test(MAST), self-rating anxiety scale(SAS) and self-rating depression scale(SDS) of Zung, Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory(MMPI), symptom Checklist-90-revision(SCL-90-R), and Eysenck personality questionnaire(EPQ) . The differences between the two groups were tested by chi-square test and independent-samples t-test. RESULTS: 1) Education level of female alcoholics was significantly less than that of male alcoholics(p<0.05) and the birth order of female alcoholics was significantly higher than that of male alcoholics(p<0.05). 2) The level of socioeconomic status of female alcoholics was significantly lower than that of male alcoholics(p<0.01). 3) The initial motivations of female alcoholics were mainly due to social, psychological, and intrafamilial problems while those of male alcoholics were due to social problems. There were significant differences between the two groups(p<0.05). 4) The onset of initial drinking in female alcoholics was significantly earlier than that of male alcoholics(p<0.001). 5) The average amount of daily drinking in female alcoholics was significantly less than that of male alcoholics(p<0.01). 6) Withdrawal symptoms, physical disorders, and social or legal problems induced by alcohol drinking in female alcoholics were significantly less than those of male alcoholics(p<0.05) 7) The mean scores of PY scale of SCL90R and of L scale of EPQ in female alcoholics were significantly higher than those of male alcoholics(p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Demographic and psychosocial factors differed to a significant degree between male and female alcoholism. We suggest that these factors are more important in female alcoholism than in male one in the etiologies and the clinical features. These differences are due to more complex factors rather than simple ones, thus the further evaluations are needed to elucidate the differences in the etiologies between male and female alcoholism.
Alcohol Drinking ; Alcoholics* ; Alcoholism ; Anxiety ; Birth Order ; Depression ; Drinking ; Education ; Female* ; Humans ; Inpatients ; Male* ; Mass Screening ; Michigan ; Minnesota ; Psychology ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Social Class ; Social Problems ; Substance Withdrawal Syndrome

Polycystic liver is the most common extra-renal manifestation associated with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), comprising up to 80% of all features. Patients with polycystic liver often suffer from abdominal discomfort, dyspepsia, or dyspnea; however, there have been few ways to relieve their symptoms effectively and safely. Therefore, we tried transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE), which has been used in treating hepatocellular carcinoma. We enrolled four patients with ADPKD in Seoul National University Hospital, suffering from enlarged polycystic liver. We embolized the hepatic arteries supplying the dominant hepatic segments replaced by cysts using polyvinyl alcohol particles and micro-coils. The patients were evaluated 12 months after embolization for the change in both liver and cyst volumes. Among four patients, one patient was lost in follow up and 3 patients were included in the analysis. Both liver (33%; 10%) and cyst volume (47.7%; 11.4%) substantially decreased in two patients. Common adverse events were fever, epigastric pain, nausea, and vomiting. We suggest that TAE is effective and safe in treating symptomatic polycystic liver in selected ADPKD patients.
Aged ; Catheterization ; Cysts/*therapy ; Embolization, Therapeutic/instrumentation/*methods ; Female ; Hepatic Artery ; Humans ; Liver/pathology/physiology ; Liver Diseases/pathology/*therapy ; Middle Aged ; Polycystic Kidney, Autosomal Dominant/diagnosis/*therapy ; Polyvinyl Alcohol/therapeutic use ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed